Spam, or unwanted emails and web pages can cause problems, including lost productivity based on the time that a user spends reading the spam. It is often desired to remove or block these messages. Different systems attempt to do so.
For emails, certain filtering systems exist. These filtering systems often work on the address level; i.e. certain users are blocked from sending further emails. My co-pending application Ser. No. 09/690,002 also describes another system which uses rules to remove Spam.
Spam can take another form—specifically unwanted web pages. Certain web pages cause other web pages to open as so-called pop up windows. The theory is that a user will look at these, at very least while closing the window. Certain pop up window detectors such as POW!, available from www.analogx.com, kills unwanted pop ups immediately when they occur. However, POW! operates by the same system as disclosed above: specifically it detects an address which is programmed into a database of addresses, and uses that to make the decision to close the primary window.